The present invention relates to a version and configuration management system using a computer system and more particularly to a version and configuration management method and apparatus for managing versions of elements in an aggregate of elements such as a plurality of documents or the like and relation of the versions and a computer-readable recording medium in which a version and configuration management program is stored.
Development of large-scale programs and writing of documents such as manuals are often made by the group work by a plurality of persons rather than by an individual. In such a group work, it is necessary to do the work in cooperation while the persons in charge communicate with one another and manage their respective working circumstances in addition to management of versions of documents.
To this end, a document management system used in the group work essentially requires the version management function and the configuration management function.
The version management function is to manage information such as version numbers and preparation dates of documents and restore any past versions so that any versions are preserved and taken out easily when the user edits and preserves documents. For example, when a latest version is erased by mistake or when it is desired that a document at the time of three days ago is restored, the version management function is required.
An aggregate of a series of related elements such as files or objects in which documents or source programs are stored is named a project. The elements may be components in documents and programs. The configuration management function is to manage related elements constituting a project. Further, the configuration management function also has the function of not only managing relation between a plurality of elements but also managing relation between versions set to individual elements and preserving the project at any past time.
The above-mentioned problems are definitely considered with reference to an example where a large-scale manual is written in cooperation.
It is assumed that writers are determined for respective chapters and the writers start writing at their own writing pace. At this time, there often occur circumstances where "the manual of this version is once preserved and continuously a manual of a new version must be written" or "a document is erased by mistake during the writing work, while the manual of a previous version must be submitted in haste regardless of the previous version". In order to preserve a project at any past time, it is necessary to manage elements constituting the project and also manage versions of the elements at the past time. To this end, not only the version management function but also the configuration management function is requisite.
If the version is not managed, a document is overwritten each time the document is edited and preserved, so that only the document of a latest version is left. Accordingly, documents erased by mistake or documents at a past time cannot be restored.
Thus, a method of managing the versions by hand, for example, by giving names to individual versions by the user himself has been performed, while this method takes time and management of information pertaining to relation between documents and modification of documents as compared with previous versions must be all made by hand. Accordingly, the management is extremely complicated and actually impossible.
Further, when the configuration is not managed, a plurality of elements cannot be related to one another and accordingly it cannot be understood which versions of which elements have relation therebetween. Accordingly, a method in which versions to which a plurality of elements are related are arranged to be registered collectively in a project to manage the configuration has been also performed, while in this method the user must manage versions of individual elements when the versions are registered in the project and accordingly this method takes much time.
In order to manage the project which is an aggregate of related elements such as files or objects without any burden of management on the user, the version management function and the configuration management function are requisite.
A conventional version management system aiming at realization of such functions attains the following functions.
This system can manage versions of elements such as files or objects, so that versions of respective elements at any time can be taken out and information as to how versions are changed as compared with previous versions can be managed. Furthermore, elements such as a plurality of files or objects are registered in one project, so that the elements can be managed as a related aggregate.
FIG. 5 illustrates the above system definitely.
Elements such as "a table of contents", "the first chapter", "FIG. 1" and "the second chapter" can be registered to be managed as a related aggregate into one project of "manual for xx product (1st edition)". Further, update of version that each element is updated from the version 1 to the versions 2, 3 (hereinafter described as V1, V2, . . . ) can be automatically managed and it is possible to refer to a latest version of each element at any time from a configuration management folder.
For example, the element named "the first chapter" is updated from V1 to V2, V3, and V3 is now a latest version. That is, the version of "the first chapter" registered in "manual for xx product (1st edition)" is V3.